Page 59 - SAMENA Trends - December 2023
P. 59

SATELLITE UPDATES  SAMENA TRENDS

        MTN Group Collaborating with Four Satellite Operators to Expand Africa’s Internet

        Connectivity



        African regional  operator MTN Group
        is  teaming  up  with  the  likes  of  SpaceX
        (Starlink),  AST SpaceMobile, OneWeb and
        Lynk  Global  to  develop  satellite-based
        internet  connectivity  across  rural  parts
        of the  continent.  In  developing  its  Low
        Earth  Orbit  (LEO)  exploration,  Techpoint
        Africa  notes  that  MTN  Group has  already
        initiated pilot trials with AST SpaceMobile
        (Nigeria, South Sudan), Lynk Global (Ghana,
        South  Africa)  and  Starlink  (Rwanda  and
        Nigeria)  to  test  standard  and  direct-to-
        device satellite  services. It  is  understood
        that MTN’s contracts with satellite service
        providers  ‘are  based  on  a  shared  revenue
        model, even  though each agreement  is
        negotiated separately’.




        Hughes Rolls Out New Internet Plans with Jupiter 3 Capacity


        Hughes  Network  Systems  has  introduced   Hughes  also  has  the  Hughes  Fusion  plan   ultra-high-density  satellite  features  more
        new  high-speed  satellite  internet  plans   which combines satellite  and wireless   than 300 spot beams and brings 500 Gbps
        using  capacity  from its  recently  launched   technologies for a lower latency experience.   of capacity over the United States, Canada,
        Jupiter-3  satellite.  The  company  now   This  is  a  milestone  for  Hughes  as  the   Mexico,  and  parts  of South America. The
        offers  new plans  with  speeds  up to 100   company was maxed out on capacity for its   company has  lost  subscribers  in  recent
        Mbps, and all plans include unlimited data.   fleet before Jupiter 3 launched in July. The   years  as  it  was  capacity-constrained
                                                                                 while  Starlink  began  commercial  service.
                                                                                 According  to parent  company EchoStar’s
                                                                                 most  recent  financial  results,  Hughes
                                                                                 ended the third quarter with approximately
                                                                                 1,063,000 broadband subscribers — down
                                                                                 17%  year-over-year.  Hughes  said  these
                                                                                 new plans and speeds are a “fundamental
                                                                                 reinvention”  of what  satellite  internet  can
                                                                                 be. “Customers expect to be able to stream,
                                                                                 videoconference  and  play games  online,”
                                                                                 said  Peter  Gulla,  senior  vice  president,
                                                                                 Hughes. “The new Hughesnet is designed to
                                                                                 enable these applications with fast speeds,
                                                                                 unlimited data and new low-latency Fusion
                                                                                 plans.  Since  inventing  satellite  internet  in
                                                                                 the 1990s, Hughes has been dedicated to
                                                                                 constantly  innovating  our service to meet
                                                                                 the needs of customers beyond the reach
                                                                                 of cable and fiber connectivity.”









                                                                                                    59  DECEMBER 2023
   54   55   56   57   58   59   60   61   62   63   64